


the ghost by my side, so perfectly clear

by VolxdoSioda



Series: Whumptober 2018 (Complete) [4]
Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: AU, Day 4 - "No stop!", Gen, Regis whump, Versus!Noctis, Whumptober, canon!Regis
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-05
Updated: 2018-10-05
Packaged: 2019-07-25 13:57:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,084
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16198910
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/VolxdoSioda/pseuds/VolxdoSioda
Summary: Noctis tries to get used to the idea of having someone who cares whether he lives or dies now.He doesn't quite get it, but maybe one day.





	the ghost by my side, so perfectly clear

There are Niffs on his doorstep. 

Noctis opens his eyes, sighing to himself as he hefts himself off the throne. The magic of the Citadel hums and crackles around him ominously, a sound he has come to recognize since Bahamut dropped him here weeks ago. He calmly strides down the darkened hallways of Regis' kingdom, flicking his magic around him to form invisible shields even as he calls on the Arms. 

No doubt the Kingsglaive will already been on watch, ready to meet the intruders at the door. But there is no reason to waste good lives on violence when Noctis will suffice. Not when he has held his own against Niflheim's invasion before. Not when Lucis has an immortal on call.

"No, stop! Noctis!"

He stops. Ahh, he should have known Regis would be here already. He glances over at the dark-haired man striding towards him rapidly, the faintest lines of fear on his face. By his right shoulder and a step behind Clarus keeps pace with his king, and on his left stays Cor the Immortal. 

"It's best you remain here," Noctis says. "Call back your Glaives, Regis."

"You don't mean to go out there, do you?" Regis demands. "Not when your wounds--"

"My wounds are healed, Regis. Doubtless I will acquire new ones in moments. Call back your Glaives."

He has heard the stories of his younger self's death. He knows Regis doesn't want to lose him, not when he's given the man hope. But Noctis has duties to fulfill as the last King of Lucis, and one of them is defending his realm, whether Regis wants it or not.

Regis hesitates. He's fighting against treating Noctis like his son, and treating Noctis like a fellow King, a warrior who can protect himself. In the end, the respect between Kings wins out. "Very well. You need only yell if you require extra hands. Please be safe, Noctis."

Noctis laughs. It's cruel, he's been told, but he can't help it. "I'm immortal, Regis. For me, there is no such concept. It won't take but a moment."

Except it takes a lot longer than a moment. Niflheim  has evidently caught word of him - perhaps that Ardyn fellow told, or maybe that creepy scientist that Noctis dislikes with a passion rarely seen. But they have brought more than just mere soldiers to this fight, and so even as Noctis layers the Citadel with his own magic and silently shields every window, door and entrance, protecting Regis and his men from harm, he knows he won't be walking away from this fight unscathed.

But the Niffs do not have the honor yet of making him bow to their whims, and they certainly have not broken him. And so Noctis calmly walks down the steps, and meets their gunfire with his Arms, and then proceeds to methodically turn their grand plan of out-numbering him into a one-man massacre.

He's riddled with bullets, by the time it's over, and even he can admit he's in quite a bit of pain. At some point, one of his arms has been wrenched from it's socket, and now it lies limp at his side, broken in two or more spots. The various bullet holes are oozing blood, and he can already tell one of the wounds is fatal - he'll likely perish sometime soon, and wake up seconds later as Bahamut's blessing kicks in. His clothes have been shredded by sword, wind, and fire, and likely will not make a recover. The Magitek soldiers were certainly higher quality than the last ones he fought. 

He considers calling for a Healer, to relieve Regis, who he can feel staring at him in something akin to panic from behind the wards. He imagines even from a distance, he doesn't make a pretty sight. He stumbles over and sits on the edge of the fountain, taking in several deep breaths. Each one rattles his lungs, and he hears something hiss faintly in his chest. 

Perhaps more than one fatal injury after all.

He closes his eyes, and lets himself lean forward, body supporting itself with his sword. He closes his eyes, and for a handful of moments, stops breathing. His heart stops beating. He dies.

And then Bahamut's magic, powerful and bloody, rips through him, and his wounds begin to close. The bullets in his flesh pop out like maggots from a carcass, and his broken bones jerk as they realign themselves with creaks and snaps and pops. He coughs up a bit of blood, but that's mainly the forced healing element to this whole spell. 

When he opens his eyes, he finds Regis kneeling in front of him, hands clasped around his own, and half a dozen Glaives surrounding them, guarding them. Not that there's anything to guard against - not when Noctis cut every Niff that came marching through the gates down like paper. 

"I'm awake," he says, and Regis' head jerks up. There are tears in his eyes, just like always. It's this moment where Noctis almost wants to apologize for all of this - for being brought here, for disturbing Regis' mourning for a son he really no longer has. Noctis might share a name with the boy, but their upbringings have been vastly different. He's a warrior, and the fighting grounds call to him like a siren, just as Death does. 

"Noctis," Regis breaths, and then bows his head. "Thank Bahamut you're alright."

 _You won't lose me again,_ he wants to tell this man, humble and kind, a good father and a better King.  _Or rather, Bahamut will not permit me to be lost. And I will not allow any of you to go down that path where I cannot follow, yet._

"As ever," he says, and stands. The Glaives part to allow him and Regis to walk back up the steps, but it doesn't escape his notice that Cor moves to shield him on his left, while Clarus remains sharply at Regis' shoulder. And Regis keeps a hand on Noctis' shoulder as they go.

"Come to dinner with me, Noctis," Regis orders. "You've done enough for today."

Sat on a throne for nearly twelve hours, and killed a crew and a half of Niffs in thirty minutes. "As you say. I will join you."

He doesn't yet understand this world, can't grasp the emotional connections Regis desires from him. But these people are his to protect, and if nothing else Noctis can ensure their well-being until his task is complete. 

**Author's Note:**

> So this one is considerably lighter than the last three prompts. It's also based on an au I have had rolling around in my head since I saw the old Versus trailers again. 
> 
> \- Noctis comes from a time where Niflheim has taken over everything, the line of Lucis is more or less dead, the Ring lost, the Crystal shattered. The Gods are dead. Noctis grows up knowing he has power, though not knowing why, until Bahamut plops him in the abandoned Citadel and orders him to hold the line. When Bahamut eventually fades from lack of belief, he grants Noctis immortality, to help keep him going. Since during this time he and Noctis have been pretty cool, Noctis is legitimately upset when he dies, and overjoyed to have him alive again in the new realm.
> 
> \- Regis, meanwhile, is in his 30's. His wife was lost at childbirth, and Noctis died in the Maralith attack. Regis has never truly recovered, and spent every anniversary pretty much holed up feeling guilty for not getting there sooner despite numerous sources pretty much telling him there was absolutely nothing he could do to prevent what happened. It was just bad luck. 
> 
> \- The Prophecy still needs fulfilling, and Bahamut has knowledge of the various worlds/lines, so he reaches between them to pull Noctis from his world, where he's pretty much in a Final Battle against the entire army of Niflheim. Regis and Noctis are both understandably wigged out by this whole affair, until Bahamut tells Regis to take Noctis to the Crystal, where he pulls them both in and proceeds to explain everything.
> 
> \- Noctis is fine going and fighting Niflheim again and killing a fellow immortal because Bahamut asked him to. Regis is less fine.
> 
> \- They get better about it, but they never reach the father-son relationship. The closest they get is brothers-in-arms, because Noctis is a warrior at heart and refuses to step back and let others fight for him. It drives Regis around the bend, but he recognizes the more he tries to protect Noctis, the more he'll be resented. They call each other by name, although sometimes Regis slips up or tries to coddle him a little too much. 
> 
> \- Noctis has vague memories of seeing dead bodies that resemble Prompto, Gladio and Ignis in his old world, but doesn't know them beyond that. Because of that as well as his "one man army" attitude, any kind of bonding is left by the wayside. Especially because Noctis refuses to let them come along on the journey because he doesn't want anyone sacrificing themselves for a gods-damned _immortal_.


End file.
